


don't find somebody else, or our love will go cold.

by indeliblereddie



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, Everyone Is Gay, Everyone Needs A Hug, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Gay, I'm Bad At Tagging, M/M, Sorry Not Sorry, Step-Siblings Will Byers & Eleven | Jane Hopper, Will Byers Deserves Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-19
Updated: 2019-10-19
Packaged: 2020-12-24 09:47:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,255
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21097433
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/indeliblereddie/pseuds/indeliblereddie
Summary: Mike Wheeler was excited to see his best friend again.his best friend who he was maybe, slightly... very, in love with.that was, until, his friend El explained Will had a new boyfriend.oh. i guess he's found somebody else.his hand shakes as he presses play on 'somebody else'.little does he know, Will Byers is playing it at the same time, his tears as heavy as Mike's.fuck, so much for the joys at Christmas.or maybe, is it so much for that 'somebody else' ....?





	don't find somebody else, or our love will go cold.

**Author's Note:**

> hi this is my first fic so please be nice !!  
this was gonna be a sadder fic bc self projection but i cba so this is more fluffy than angsty hehe  
ALSOO i didn't really proof read this so there's likely many many many spelling mistakes or typos but shut up ok-

Mike looked down at his jittery hand, and he felt his hot cheeks, and he let out a small laugh. had you told him two years ago that just the thought of his smaller best friend, the one and only Will Byers, could make him act like this, he would have held a confused and almost disgusted look, and thought you were nothing but a little off your head. but he was 16 now, and far more comfortable with his bisexuality, and his old best friend Will Byers who he hadn't seen in 6 months and hadn't spoken over the phone with in 2 months, had grown up into one of the most handsome boys he figured had walked the earth-

and here he went again, his thoughts flooding with Will. he giggled as he held his chin in his hands like some lovesick teenager.  
_oh wait, he is a lovesick teenager. oh he is SO whipped, the poor boy. _  
he remembered his friends, Dustin, Lucas, and Max, being the first ones to call him out in a similar tone to that. they had told him, one frosty Autumn afternoon in Mike's basement, that he couldn't run away from his feelings forever. he had moved on from El to her brother. to his best friend, and he should understand that it was okay, that they loved him no matter how "disgustingly lovesick" he acted toward the boy. (Max's exact words, he remembered with an eye roll and a snort)  
he allowed himself to keep thinking those infatuated thoughts as he wandered over to his phone, he allowed himself to think of those swirly hazel eyes and porcelain skin, of that shining smile and sharp cheekbones that went pink if the boy was flustered, and he allowed the thoughts as he picked up said phone and started dialling El's number. he _would_ call Will, but his phone had been taken away, so he usually had to reach Will through El. not that she minded, in fact she always teased Mike about his crush, which should be strange considering their past, but it just wasn't. he was so thankful for that.  
"hey Mike, what's up?" the phone line crackled loudly in his ear.  
"hey El. you excited for tomorrow?"  
tomorrow, he remembered giddily. tomorrow was Christmas Eve, and more importantly, tomorrow he sees El and Will again. he gets to hug them. he gets to hug Will. and maybe, just maybe, he can finally tell Will how he feels, those three damned words-  
"I'm buzzing!! Will's really excited too, you know. he can't come to the phone right now though. he's out with... he's out with Mateo."  
Mike's face suddenly dropped.  
Mateo.  
who the fuck was Mateo? and why was Will hanging out with him at- he checked his watch and added an hour according to the time zone- 11 PM at night??  
_ok calm the fuck down, dumbass. _he thought to himself, _its probably just one of his new friends, he can have other friends, you know. plus, El said he's excited to see YOU, remember!! YOU. so snap out of it, dingus._  
he gulped. "oh uh, that's ok! uhm.. who- who's Mateo, El?" he asked, slowly. he dreaded for what he knew El would say next. he dreaded it, he dreaded it, he-  
"it's uhm, it's his new boyfriend, Mike. they've been dating for a couple weeks now. I'm sorry i didn't tell you, i just didn't want you to be hurt-"  
Mike faked a cough to cover up the way his throat was tightening and the way tears were threatening to spill from his eyes. why the fuck should he cry? this was his fucking fault for catching stupid, dumb feelings for someone who didn't feel the same. he should've known he lost his chance when Will got in that moving truck and left his life. he should've known when two months ago Will stopped being able to chat on the phone, always away with "friends". he should've known. it was stupid. so stupid.  
"hey uh, El it was nice hearing from you. see you tomorrow, yeah? i should go to sleep, uh- yeah, uhm, love you. bye." he stammered, and hung up before he heard anymore that would most likely sucker punch his already broken heart.

he let his feet find their way back to his bed, and he collapsed on his back. that way the tears weren't falling as violently as before. his lips were quivering still, and he let his shaking fingers ghost over their surface.

a memory came flying toward him, smacking his lips right where his index finger lay now.

_it had been the last week of summer vacation, a day before the Byers' were due to depart. Mike and Will sat cross legged in the junkyard, atop a smashed bus, under the stars. Will was telling Mike a story, Mike knew that much. but he couldn't hear a single word. his ears were ringing, as he looked at the boy next to him who was wearing a thin, oversized summer jacket that reached his mid thighs and a pair of shorts that surely were freezing his legs in the cool, summer night air. the moonlight was illuminating every part of him, he remembers thinking as he looked him up and down. he remembers the way the soft glow bounced off his cheekbones and roman nose and highlighted his pink lips as he talked quickly about something. _  
_Mike didn't care about the story in that moment._  
_he cared that his heart was beating faster than it ever had with his ex._  
_he cared that Will was the most beautiful, smart, talented, and caring person in the universe. _  
_he cared that right now Will had stopped blabbering just to look back into his eyes,_  
_and lastly, he cared that Will's cheeks were pinker than his parted lips._  
_so in the midst of that lovesick daze he found himself in, he moved forward, his lips ghosting over Will's, waiting for approval, and he felt those lips push onto his with more compassion and love anyone had ever dared give him. _  
_he only cared that Will's lips were on his. _  
_he only cared that he and Will were kissing. _  
_he only cared that Will liked him back._  
_but as the other boy pulled back, they both remembered the truth._  
_Will had to leave him tomorrow._  
_they couldn't have eachother how they wanted eachother, they just- couldn't._  
_and so for the rest of the night, the last night where they could be entirely them and entirely eachother, the only witness the moon, they promised unbreakable things and they held hands and they kissed again and again__and they cried and they apologized and they spoke their farewells._

Mike couldn't help the way his whole chest now shaked with sobs as he recalled that night, lying in his bed, thinking about how all the promises they made must have meant nothing to Will.  
_i guess he found somebody else, _he thought solemnly.  
_i hope he's happy with his somebody else._  
_somebody else. _  
he remembered a song he'd heard Lucas play at one of their party hang outs a couple weeks back.  
he started humming the song, and typed the title into spotify.  
**somebody else **  
**the ****1975**** ;**  
his screen glowed. he shakily pressed play, his vision still slightly blurry with tears.  
the first notes spilled out, and Mike gulped.  
"so i heard ... you found ... somebody else ..."  
he closed his eyes, and let emotion flood every pore in his body.  
_somebody else._  
_somebody else._  
_he's found somebody else._  
_he doesn't care about that night, 'cause he's found somebody else. he found somebody else. _he thought, the music only background noise. but then he turned it up, and let the real lyrics sink in.

\----

"I'M LOOKIN' THROUGH YOU WHILST YOU'RE LOOKIN' THROUGH YOUR PHONE-"  
Will Byers jumped about his room, one of his new favourite songs playing. it never usually made him cry, this song, why was it now? as he danced his pain away?  
oh yeah.  
his boyfriend.  
(_well, now ex-boyfriend_)  
just told Will he couldn't be with him anymore.  
he was sorry, but he'd found somebody else, and it wasn't fair to him that they stayed together.  
he hoped maybe, some day, they could still be friends.  
and he was "sorry".  
Will supposed it wasn't the worst way he could be dumped, Mateo had gone about it quite politely, but- gah, really? he'd found _somebody else, _huh? Will sighed, and he finally realised why this song was actually full of pain. he wasn't the only one, now, who had been left for somebody else.  
tears made tracks down his cheeks and he didn't even bother to wipe them away, not even when his beloved sister El slowly crept into his room to see him.  
"oh, Will..." she sighed, noticing his tears and the way he sat slumped on the bed, the music still blaring to his right. she perched beside him, cautiously, before wrapping an arm around his shoulders and pulling him in close. "what happened, bub? is this about Mateo? or.." she whispered into his hair, trailing off at the end, too unsure to finish her words.  
Will hiccuped, his voice scratchy from crying.  
"me- me and Mateo broke up, Ellie." normally she wouldn't allow anyone but Max, her girlfriend of four months who still lived in Hawkins, to call her Ellie, but right now all she could think to do was try not to cry and kiss his cheek and hold him as he sobbed.  
"oh Will, Will, Will.. I'm so sorry. I know you loved him-"  
"but that's the thing, El. I- I don't know whether i did love him. i think I've loved before, and it felt different to how i felt about him.. i think i only ever _liked _Mateo.."  
"it was Mike you.. you loved, wasn't it, Will?" she whispered, barely audible, and Will thought if she tried to go quieter she might break.  
"you don't need to be so quiet, El. i doubt anyone's surprised. but that- that's over now. he's probably moved on, Ellie. and i-i don't blame him! i went off with M-Mateo and he- well, i don't know. i guess i'll see tomorrow." he stammered out, wiping his tears, and pulled away from El to turn off his music, the last lyric he heard being; 'our love has gone cold....' he shivered, subconsciously.  
he walked back to the bed, refusing to look his sister in the eye. she did something he didn't expect, though. she chuckled, softly. so very softly that he almost missed it. he whipped his head around to face her, big hazel eyes meeting similar rich brown ones.  
"oh, bub. there's so much you don't understand yet." she started walking to the door, running a hand through her soft bob of brown hair. she turned, before she left, smiling at his confused expression. "hope you've packed already. goodnight, Willy- Will."  
and with that, he was left alone with his thoughts.  
his least favourite thing to be alone with.  
though instead of the billion most prominent things he could've thought of that night, he fell asleep to the thought of Mike Wheeler's face and the ghost of the lyrics to _somebody else ._

_oh, i hate to think about you with somebody else..._  
_somebody else. _

...

Chrismas Eve, 2019.  
6:30 PM.  
Wheeler household.  
Hawkins, Indiana.

the Byers' beat up old car pulled into the Wheeler driveway, El practically jumping out the moving car and pulling a slightly reluctant Will along with her, all the way up to the door where she rang the doorbell of the busy house possibly a thousand times. Will giggled at her excitement, but his breath hitched to a stop as the door opened to reveal Mike Wheeler, the light behind him illuminating his mess of curls and stupid, pointy, Santa hat that sat lopsided on top of said pretty curls. he wore a nervous grin, and his brown eyes widened as he stared at Will. Will smiled shyly, before he gave into the magnet in his chest pulling him eagerly and ran into the other boys arms. quickly, Mike's lanky arms tightened around Will, and he rested his chin on top of his head, and for a second Will thought he heard his best friend sniffle.  
"Michael Wheeler, you big sap, are you crying?" he whispered into his ear, and he heard Mike laugh, airily. _God, what a heavenly sound to hear,_ he thought. he pulled away, and he swore his heart stuttered as he stared into Mike's eyes, their faces inches apart. suddenly, almost forgotten memories of that night on top of the bus in the junkyard swarmed his mind, and he felt himself heating up, and suddenly needing to cry. he quickly stepped away, tearing his gaze away from the handsome, chiseled face of Mike Wheeler. he excused himself to the bathroom, and stayed there for a solid five minutes, pretending to be just "fixing his hair" (he was, in fact, doing that, but also enjoying hearing the conversations between the party outside the door and of course, also occasionally bursting into tears.)

when Will finally emerged from the bathroom, Mike couldn't help but watch him as he passed the adults in the kitchen, discussing adult things over wine and eggnog, and across to where Mike and the party sat. he observed as Will hugged all the other party members, until he reached Mike. he stared at Will until the boy had no choice but to return his gaze, and the sudden heat from that look, and all the emotion he could read in the swirls of green and brown that nestled in Will's irises caused his cheeks to feel as though they were on fire, visibly burning for all to see and laugh at.  
but no one laughed, at least not at him. all his friends, who he loved dearly, joked and talked and reminisced and hugged and even kissed, in the case of Max and El. (who were intertwined with eachother, practically radiating happiness). however, Mike could hardly hear anything other than his own heartbeat, Will's occasional soft laugh, and he swore, as insane as it sounds as Will sat at least a metre away, but he SWORE he could hear Will's rapid heartbeat, too. and with that thought in mind, he beckoned Will into the hallway so they could talk.

Will wiped his sweaty hands on his blue jeans, his heart pounding and his lip almost drawing blood with how hard he was biting it. he was standing across from none other than Mike Wheeler, who wore a smile that he knew held no real meaning, behind it, well, behind it was a sadness that made Will's stomach churn painfully.  
"it's good to see you, Mike.." Will started, unsure what else to say.  
"you too, Will. i- i missed you. a lot." he spoke softly, staring at his feet.  
Will blushed, and quickly attempted to cover it by pulling his sweater sleeve further down his hand, and holding said hand over his face. "i missed you too, Mike, but is- is that _really _what you pulled me aside to talk about-"  
"i uh- fuck. uhm.. okay. sorry this is forward, but... i- i heard that you found _somebody else... _is- is that true?"  
Will felt his heart drop and squeeze, and it hurt far more than it should've.  
_somebody else._  
_so much for somebody-fucking-else._  
"i- uh, i did. but he broke up with me last night. so, uh, so much for 'somebody else'" he chuckled awkwardly, and couldn't help but notice Mike's head shooting up to face Will, his eyes wide and... hopeful. "wait Mike why do y-"  
"r-really? so... so there isn't somebody else?"  
"i- no. Mike. there's nobody else.." he looked him dead in the eye, hoping his stare could say what he couldn't. he gulped, and continued almost inaudibly "but why do you care, Mike Wheeler?"  
"i think you know why, Will Byers."  
they both blushed, and both hearts stuttered.  
the speakers from the living room started blaring none other than _**somebody else by the **__**1975**_. they both started laughing, proper hearty laughs, and once they had calmed, a strange comfort of knowing blanketed them. Will tried to bite back his smile as he watched Mike's face like it was an art piece in the Louvre, and strangely, he noticed, Mike was observing him the exact same. Will extended his arm, moving slightly to the music.  
'dance with me, wheeler.'  
'ever the most demanding, byers. but i accept.'  
he grabbed his hand, and Will was sure now that Mike must be some kind of wizard to cause his heart to loop the way it was in that moment. they began dancing with one another, a mess of tangled arms, and it was perfect. time seemed to slow, and almost subconsciously Will felt himself being pulled toward Mike, closer, closer, closer, until he was so close that he could smell the gingerbread Mike had been eating earlier. he noticed how the lights from the Christmas tree on his left lit up his face, ghosting every beautiful feature he held. and before he knew it, he was kissing him. and Mike was kissing back, and all of a sudden, he realised nothing else mattered. all he cared about was this boy, how much he loved him, and how much the boy loved him back. and he remembered that night in the junkyard, and slowly he smiled against Mike's lips as he remembered that last promise they'd made that night before he left.  
_'wait, Will. i have one last promise, ok?' _  
_Will giggled, and put his forehead against Mike's, intertwining their pinkies. 'yes?' he had whispered, the words ghost- like and fading. _  
_'well, firstly, we must promise that we mustn't forget tonight. but most importantly, we must promise that no matter if there's somebody else we might ever like, we will NEVER, ever, love them. we may like them, but we'll only ever fall in love with or even love eachother. do you promise, Will?' _  
_Will had been taken back, but his eyes brimmed with tears and he blinked them away before kissing Mike softly. _  
_'yeah. i promise.' _  
it seemed Mike remembered that promise too.  
'i love you, Will. thank you for coming home.'  
'fucking hell you're a sap.' he whispered, 'i love you too. now do you think we should go back to the others? they'll be getting suspicious!' he half joked, half didn't.  
Mike sighed. 'i have one thing to do first.'  
'which is?'  
Mike smirked, and kissed him like his life depended on it, then kissed his nose, his cheeks and his forehead, and Will laughed softly the whole time because he had never felt so much for one person as he felt for Mike Wheeler and it felt so, so good. to love, and to be loved.

_every since that Christmas Eve, the song 'somebody else' was never sad to the boys' ears again. it didn't mean losing your love for someone to somebody else; it meant forgetting anyone else existed except the one you love, because you cannot love anyone else. you can like someone else, but never, ever, in a million years, could you break the promise and love somebody else. and they stuck by that promise, 'cause it wasn't difficult. they were in love, and their love was invincible. and they knew that. god, they knew that._

**Author's Note:**

> hey! i really hope you enjoyed, feedback is of course appreciated!  
i know this isn't the best but i tried ok lmao also my twt is @/indeliblefilms if you wanna follow me there MWAH


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